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NEWS INDUSTRY UPDATES

Each month PSBJ rounds up the latest public sector construction updates, from new contracts to industry awards.

Basildon homes made greener with energy-saving technology

Basildon Council – in partnership with Morgan Sindall Property Services – has become the first local authority in the country to install goldeni, a new energy-saving software platform. The goldeni technology uses interconnected sensors to provide social housing landlords and tenants with real-time, actionable insights to help them ensure their properties are healthy, legally compliant and more energy efficient. It will play a crucial role in the council’s aim to make all its operations carbon netzero by 2030, with a wider target of 2050 for the borough. The goldeni platform has been developed by data scientists working for Morgan Sindall Property Services, which is the council’s property maintenance contractor. The platform collects data on the internal environmental conditions, including temperature, air pressure, light levels, humidity and carbon dioxide. goldeni also detects for water leaks and monitors electricity and gas consumption and, using intelligent boiler technology, provides tenants with more efficient boiler operations for heating and hot water in their homes.

Guildford-based construction firm Beard will be playing its part in supporting the next generation of young tennis players with the development of key improvements at The All England Lawn Tennis Club Community Tennis Centre, at Raynes Park, London. Under the ownership of The All England Lawn Tennis Club, the facility services an array of requirements. It supports The Championships, Wimbledon, providing a training ground for the contingent of ball boys and girls, and is also home to the Wimbledon Junior Tennis Initiative coaching programme, which is at the forefront of nurturing young talent. The Community Tennis Centre also provides ‘pay and play’ opportunities for the public, with more than 5000 members having signed up so far. But the site is also in need of improvements in order to accommodate the demand for its courts and training facilities. Beard has been appointed to build a fantastic new clubhouse topped off with a section of green roof, a cafe lounge, a flexible studio space and an elevated terrace to view the new main court. The plan also includes creating a new carparking area to service the clubhouse, as well as landscaping work.

Beard to deliver major improvements to tennis club’s community centre £5.4m museum extension housing iconic WW2 plane celebrated

Thousands of visitors have now visited the £5.4m extension to the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Stoke-on-Trent, which now houses an original Spitfire aircraft thanks to specialist project management from national property, construction and infrastructure consultancy Pick Everard. The project comprised the design and construction of a new 3800ft2, double-height exhibition space with mezzanine and the alteration and refurbishment of the existing cafe space within the art gallery and museum, alongside extensive external landscaping. Utilising a steel frame and rainscreen cladding, the new exhibition space has been designed with specialist structural glazing to allow the main attraction, the city’s iconic RW388 Spitfire aircraft, to be exhibited. The area also houses a flight simulator, model Hurricane aircraft and other exhibitions. Matt Hall, National Director for Project Management at Pick Everard, said: “We are delighted to have delivered such a historically-significant development, which creates a lasting legacy for the city of Stoke-onTrent. Our expertise, combined with that from tourism and leisure architect Glancy Nicholls, has created a spectacular display space for the iconic Spitfire – a centrepiece the city can be proud of.”

Browne Jacobson re-appointed to Platform Housing Group’s four-year legal framework

National law firm Browne Jacobson has been re-appointed onto Platform Housing Group’s (PHG) legal services framework for property and employment work. The new four-year agreement officially started on 17th January this year and replaces the current panel arrangement. The firm has worked with Platform Housing Group (which was originally a merger between Waterloo Housing Group and Fortis Living) since 2007 and the appointment will see it continue to advise on a broad range of practice areas including construction, development, planning, property and sales. They will also support the group from an employment law perspective for the first time. Nathan Barson, Procurement Director at Platform Housing Group, said: “It is great to see our new Category Management function using the tools and techniques to deliver such high-quality work; not only have we successfully mapped our complex requirements but we have managed to secure commercially-robust agreements with some of the country’s leading law firms. We have added value, successfully matched our ambitions to the leading players in the market and ensured we have the partnerships in place for a truly modern housing association.”

Affordable homes and charity headquarters set to regenerate Hemel Hempstead site

Plans have been submitted to regenerate a brownfield site in the centre of Hemel Hempstead with 56 new homes and a purpose-built headquarters for homeless charity, DENS. On behalf of Dacorum Borough Council, multi-disciplinary design practice rg+p has designed and submitted plans for a complete redevelopment of the Paradise Depot site, which is located off St Albans Road, east of the town centre. Currently occupied by the DENS office and foodbank as well as other commercial/industrial premises, the intention is for the site to become an asset for the town. rg+p’s design proposes a twostorey building to better serve DENS’ needs, comprising ground-floor foodbank and bike workshop together with first-floor community cafe, office space, kitchen and multi-functional meeting rooms. A shared surface unites this building with a new apartment block of 56 one- and two-bedroom homes. Cycle and scooter storage, car parking, residents’ garden and additional landscaping is also incorporated into the overall design. Each apartment has a private balcony and a proportion will be built to accessible standards. Hemel Hempstead’s distinctive local vernacular has heavily influenced the proposed material palette. The concept for the apartment building references the Old Townscape’s Tudor heritage and will feature a blend of red and dark brickwork with hit-and-miss detailing and a rusticated plinth. Contrastingly, the new DENS centre will have a predominantly darker appearance with black frame windows and rainscreen cladding.

Seddon celebrates 125th anniversary with £1m fundraising pledge

644-bed PBSA scheme approved for the Square Mile

Real estate developer Dominvs Group has received resolution to grant planning for a 644-bed purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) scheme in Holborn, supported by the London School of Economics. Designed by Stiff + Trevillion Architects and Jonathan Cook Landscape Architects, the scheme will deliver urgently-needed student housing in the heart of Central London. Dominvs Group’s plans for the 61-65 Holborn Viaduct site were approved by the City of London Corporation’s Planning and Transportation Committee. The consent followed a strong officer’s recommendation in favour of the scheme. Dominvs worked closely with the London School of Economics on the scheme, located a few minutes’ walk from the university’s main campus. The LSE seeks to increase its number of student beds from 4500 to 6000 over the next five years, following the Government’s recent commitment to the enrolment of 600,000 international students by 2030. In line with Dominvs Group’s commitment to social value, the development will deliver high-quality space for student interaction as well as amenity space for the local community. Building upon the success of the meanwhile use of the site, the Gaia’s Garden project, the ground floor will house a mix of cultural and performance space in partnership with the Creative Land Trust, a charity supported by the Mayor for London and Arts Council England, for the local community to exhibit artworks and collaborate. Seddon – one of the UK’s largest privately-owned and familymanaged national contracting businesses – is marking its 125th anniversary with a series of events and pledges that will celebrate this most incredible milestone, bring people back together and raise over £1m for charity. The fifth-generation, family-owned business, headquartered in Bolton, has asked colleagues, customers and its supply chain to come up with their own personal pledges that pay homage to the notable number, whilst raising money for The Christie Charity. So far, these include a challenging 125-mile walk, a 125-hole round of golf and a 125km swim. As well as celebrating a century and a quarter in business, Seddon hopes that its endeavours will help it fundraise £1m for The Christie Charity, as well as raising money for other worthy causes that are close to participants’ hearts. Founded in 1897 by George and John Seddon, what started out as a Salford-based bricklaying business, today employs over 650 people and has an annual turnover of £200m. Nicola Hodkinson, Seddon family member and Company Director, said: “125 years in business is a huge deal, so we’re going all out to mark the occasion with the gusto it deserves whilst raising as much money as we can for a charity that’s so close to our hearts.”

Global business and IT consultancy Waterstons is celebrating a 10-year partnership with Gateway Housing, a well-established community-based housing association in East London. Gateway Housing Association has 3000 properties primarily in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets with the aim of providing great homes for people in East London and supporting local communities to thrive. The housing association first appointed Waterstons in 2011 as its long-term IT partner to work with its in-house IT team to provide first-, second- and third-line support as well as IT strategy and governance. Social housing is a constantly shifting landscape with changing regulations and diverse resident demands. Over the last decade, Waterstons has helped Gateway Housing to deliver significant improvements including long-term technical strategy ensuring better return on investment, migration to the Cloud improving employee collaboration, mobilisation of the whole workforce for home working, project management of key business-focused IT projects ensuring new tools were delivered to time and cost, and deployment of a new intranet.